Water Facts

Do you see our Utilities vehicles in your neighborhood?

Often when you see Pittsfield Charter Township Utilities vehicles, we are out in the community performing jobs such as upgrades to meter equipment, scouting for water related issues, customer service or water and sewer line maintenance.  

Do you see these types of flags in your yard or neighborhood?

Blue flags 2
Blue flags 1

Colored flags in your yard or along the roadway are an indicator that someone is planning to perform underground construction in that area.   

Before any digging on your property, contact MISS DIG and submit a location request.  MISS DIG is a free service that will locate all of the utilities in the road right away before you begin your digging project. Identifying all utilities' locations can prevent costly repairs, as well as save your life!  You can reach MISS DIG at (800) 482-7171 or 811#.  It may take up to 36 hours to locate your utilities.

Tips for Winter

Each year we respond to multiple pipe breaks and floods due to frozen pipes. These breaks will normally occur as the weather warms up after the initial single digit temperatures. Follow these tips to help reduce your risk of damage to your home or business:

  • Shut off outdoor water sources.
  • Locate your internal water shut off valve and be able to turn it off if emergency arises.
  • Set the heat to at least 55 degrees, both day and night.
  • Insulate exposed pipes using blankets, Styrofoam or swimming noodles.
  • Keep cabinet doors open under sinks to let warmer air reach your pipes.
  • Winterizing your irrigation System.

Water Facts

  • The first municipal water filtration works opened in Paisley, Scotland, in 1832.
  • Of all the earth's water, 97% is salt water found in oceans and seas.
  • Only 3% of the earth's water is fresh water. Two percent is currently frozen.
  • About two thirds of the human body is water. Some parts of the body contain more water than others. For example, 70% of your skin is water.
  • There are more than 56,000 community water systems providing water to the public in the United States.
  • Public water suppliers process 43 billion gallons of water per day for domestic and public use.
  • Approximately 1 million miles of pipelines and aqueducts carry water in the United States and Canada. That's enough to circle the earth 40 times.
  • About 800,000 water wells are drilled each year in the United States for domestic farming, commercial, and water-testing purposes.
  • Typically, households consume at least 50% of their water by lawn sprinkling. Inside toilets use the most water, with an average of 27 gallons per person per day.
  • In 1974, Congress passed the Safe Drinking Water Act to ensure that drinking water is safe for human consumption. The Act requires public water systems to monitor and treat drinking water for safety.
  • The average person spends less than 1% of his/her total personal income for water, wastewater, and water disposal service.
  • More than 13 million households get their water from their own private wells and are responsible for treating and pumping the water themselves.
  • The average daily requirement for fresh water in the United States is about 40 billion gallons a day, with about 300 billion gallons used untreated for agricultural and commercial purposes.
  • You can survive about a month without food but only 5 to 7 days without water.
  • On average, each American uses about 160 gallons of water a day.
  • The average five-minute shower takes between 15 to 25 gallons of water.
  • An automatic dishwasher uses approximately 9 to 12 gallons of water while hand washing dishes can use up to 20 gallons.
  • If every household in America had a faucet that dripped once each second, 928 million gallons of water a day would leak away.
  • A dairy cow must drink 4 gallons of water to produce 1 gallon of milk.
  • One gallon of water weighs approximately 8.34 pounds.
  • One inch of rainfall drops 7,000 gallons, or nearly 30 tons of water, on a 60' x 180' piece of land.
  • 300 million gallons of water are needed to produce a single day's supply of U.S. newsprint.
  • We can protect our water sources by properly disposing of household chemicals, preventing them from contaminating our water sources.